


The Snake and the Badger

by nightlight9



Series: Sterek Bingo 2017 [1]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hufflepuff Derek Hale, M/M, Sad and Pining Derek, Slytherin Stiles Stilinski, Sterek Bingo 2017
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-02
Updated: 2017-05-02
Packaged: 2018-10-26 19:18:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10793088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nightlight9/pseuds/nightlight9
Summary: Being sorted into Hufflepuff wasn’t something that Derek ever considered. Why would he, when all of the Hales have been consistently placed in Slytherin for decades. Now that he’s sorted, he sees that he couldn’t have been placed in a better house. But when Stiles Stilinski is sorted into Slytherin, and Derek wonders if he’s missing out after all.





	The Snake and the Badger

Being sorted into Hufflepuff wasn’t something that Derek ever considered. Why would he, when all of the Hales have been consistently placed in Slytherin for decades, making them one of the longest lineages to have walked the halls of Hogwarts.

But now that he’s sorted, he sees that he couldn’t have been placed in a better house. Sure, at first it was hard. His older sister Laura had been saving him a seat at the Slytherin table, looking proud that her younger brother had finally made it. Watching her face fall in confusion when the sorting house announced his place was hard. He had been so afraid that his parents would be disappointed in him, that he had somehow let the family down. Of course, that never happened. They just wanted him to be happy. And he was. He became good friends with a Gryffindor named Boyd, a Slytherin named Erica, and a fellow Hufflepuff Isaac, and for the first time it felt like Derek had found his place.

When his younger sister sat in front of the school the year after him and was sorted into Slytherin, he stood up and cheered for her, not feeling bad in the slightest. But then _he_ was placed in Slytherin, and Derek wondered if he had missed out after all. Stiles Stilinski is everything that Derek isn’t - loud, boisterous, charming, blunt - and Derek thinks that he’s beautiful. And after becoming friends with him, Derek wishes he could be around him all the time. Even when he’s being a pain in the ass.

“Shouldn’t you be in class,” Derek says, trying to sound annoyed with the fifth year currently leaning against his back and over his shoulder to look at what Derek’s reading. 

Stiles huffs and backs up, flopping down beside him on the ground. “I’m so ahead in potions that there isn’t really any reason for me to be in class.” Derek raises his eyebrows at the other man until he deflates. “I may have gotten kicked out, but I honestly wasn’t doing anything wrong this time. Harris just hates me.” He pokes at Derek’s bicep. “And I know you have a free period, so I figured hanging out with my favorite Hufflepuff is a better use of my time anyway.” 

Derek tries not to let those words get to him, but it’s hard not too, especially when the younger man curls close to his side. He feels himself blush and turns back to his book to hide it. “I don’t know how to respond to the fact that you’re using me as an excuse to ditch.”

When Stiles laughs, his whole body shakes. “Please, we both know that you’re honored to partake in my delinquency. And I was kicked out.” He yawns, slouching down more so that he can rest his head on Derek’s lap and stretch out his legs. In turn, Derek holds himself still. “What are you reading, anyway?” When he catches sight of the cover, Stiles makes a pleased sound. “Muggle books, nice. That’s always been one of my mom’s favorites.”

Resisting the urge to card his fingers though Stiles’ hair, Derek asks, “You want me to read aloud?” He can feel Stiles nod, and watches as his eyes droop shut before turning the page are reading, “An unhappy alternative is before you, Elizabeth. From this day you must be a stranger to one of your parents.” The rest of the afternoon passes in a quiet haze, and Derek wonders if this is what love feels like.

\---------

“You’re pathetic.”

Derek groans and turns to glare at Laura where she has barged into the Hufflepuff common room. “How did you get in here,” he accuses.

His sister snorts and crosses the room, pushing Derek over until she can settle in beside him on the couch. “Please, I got in here the same way you get into the Slytherin commons. And even if the password changed, I would have hunted down Isaac to let me in.” He groans again. Warm arms wrap around his shoulder, pulling him close until he’s tucked into his sister's’ side. “Want to talk about it?”

He closes his eyes, taking comfort in her presence. As annoying as Laura can be, there’s a reason why he considers her his best friend. “What’s there to talk about?” He hates how dejected he sounds. “I should be happy that he’s finally got a girlfriend. He’s happy enough, and Heather seems nice. Besides, it was bound to happen eventually, right.”

Laura sighs sadly and tucks her head against his. “Oh, Der. You want me to hex her?”

He snorts. “As much as I appreciate your willingness to break the rules to defend my feelings or whatever, I’m good. You definitely don't need to get in trouble this close to graduating, and that wouldn’t be fair to her anyway. Besides, it’s not like I ever thought he would like me or that we would be together. We’re just too different. And, like I said, I expected it to happen sooner or later.” His voice softens. “I just didn’t expect it to hurt so bad, you know.” He didn't expect that his chest would feel caved in, didn’t expect that every time he saw the couple together his stomach would drop and the nausea would rise like a tide.

Warm hands pat his hair, grounding him to reality. “Yeah, I know. Don’t worry, baby brother. The pain will pass.”

As he lays curled against his sister’s side, he hopes that she’s right.

\----------

“Are you sure you don’t want to go with us to Hogsmeade?” Erica has her arms crossed over her chest in a way that would intimidate anyone else, but Derek can see the concern in her eyes. That same concern is mirrored in the expressions of all of his friends standing behind her.

He shakes his head. “No, you guys go on ahead. I have a few assignments to finish, and I haven’t had a chance to read for fun recently so I just want to stay in.”

She sighs, but lets it go. He watches as she joins the group and relies the information that Derek is staying at the school. They all glance back at him before beginning the trek to Hogsmeade. Only Stiles stays behind, making Derek’s heart clench. 

The younger man crosses the courtyard. “Der?” Derek almost shuts his eyes against the nickname. Instead he closes himself off, trying to hide what he’s feeling. “Are you okay? I mean, first you missed our group quidditch session last week, and now you don’t want to go to Hogsmeade? Is something wrong?”

He tries to act natural, even if he can’t quite meet Stiles’ gaze. “I’m fine. It’s just that I’ve been busy, is all.” He makes a gesture in the direction that their friends went. “You should get going though, so you don’t have to walk all the way there by yourself.”

Stiles is silent, so Derek risks a glance. When he sees the Slytherin’s hurt expression, he sighs. He never wanted Stiles to get hurt because of something he did, and he knows that he doesn’t deserve it. Stiles is his friend first, no matter how much he loves him. And even if he has to stand beside him and watch as he dates hundreds of other people, Derek should be there. That’s what friends do. “Hey, I promise that I’m okay. And the next time everyone gets together, I promise that I’ll show up. I just need to get this work done. Okay?”

Stiles sighs. He doesn’t look pleased, but the hurt is gone so Derek takes it as a win. “Fine, but I’m holding you to that promise. No more avoiding us. Okay.”

Derek forces a smile and nods. 

He only breathes easier when Stiles has disappeared from view.

\----------

“Maybe you should find someone else.”

Derek sighs, trying to push around Cora so he can head to bed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, and I would like it if you would let me go.”

His sister snorts, too much like Laura for her own good. “How long are you going to keep pretending that you’re fine watching him fall in love with someone else.” He tries not to choke on the word ‘love.’ “Derek, I’m actually kind of worried about you, and you know how I feel about worrying about other people. Your pining actually hurts me, like physically, every single time you force yourself to be around him. The others can’t really tell that you’re acting different, but I’ve known you longer.”

He drops his head. “I’m sorry. You shouldn’t worry, okay. I’m just fine.”

Cora does the last thing he would ever expect. She wraps her arms around him for a hug. “You’re stupid, brother. But I love you anyway, okay. If there’s anything I can do, ask Laura to do it.”

It makes him laugh, which eases some of his weariness. 

\----------

It goes on for weeks, Stiles dating Heather, Derek trying to act like nothing's wrong. He thinks that he’s getting better at being genuine around them. It’s not quite back to normal, but he can smile when he sees the pair without wanting to vomit, which he counts as progress. But then Stiles is waiting for him outside of the Hufflepuff entryway one night after dinner, and Derek knows that he wasn’t convincing enough and that Stiles finally figured it out. It’s obvious as soon as Derek rounds the corner and sees his ridged form leaning against the wall that he’s angry.

“You’re a real piece of work,” he snaps as Derek gets closer. The image he makes in his robe is of a snake in wait for its prey to get too close before it strikes. But Derek’s always been a too trusting badger, so he allows himself to get within range. Sure enough, as soon as he can, Stiles reaches out and snatches Derek’s robe to pull him closer. “Do you know that?”

Being pressed chest to chest with the Slytherin is almost too distracting that he can’t grit out, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

The fire in Stiles’ honeyed gaze could catch Derek aflame and he would welcome the burn. “You’ve been different for weeks, and I couldn't put together why. I thought that maybe you were upset because it’s Laura’s last year, but then I noticed that you only seemed to act strange when I was around. And I couldn’t figure out what I did to make you hurry in the opposite direction in the halls when you would see me and avoid hanging out with our friends. I didn't know what I could have done. You’ve practically been my best friend since I got here, and it was so frustrating that we were changing.” Derek flinches back, trying to escape Stiles’ hold. He doesn’t let go. “And you know what, I wasn’t even the one who put it together. Do you know how much that hurt my ego, that I wasn’t the one to figure out what was wrong with you? But I guess I’ve always had a blind spot where you’ve been involved, because Heather was the one who finally pointed it out to me.”

“I’m sorry,” Derek stutters out, still struggling to move away. The words spill out. “I never meant to hurt you or freak you out or anything. It was just easier for me. It gave me time to get used to the idea that you were dating, so that I could keep being your friend.”

“Because you’re in love with me.” It’s not a question.

The struggle leaves Derek. He can’t deny it. “Yeah. Because I’m in love with you. Seeing you with Heather broke me into pieces every time. And it made me feel guilty because it wasn't fair to you that I couldn’t handle my feelings. I thought I was doing better though. I’m sorry, Stiles. I’m trying, okay. I’m really trying.”

A fist connects with Derek’s chest, making him look up at Stiles in shock. The younger man is grinning and looking far too fond for having just hit him. “You’re an idiot, do you know that. I’ve been in love with you since the beginning, when you were just this growly Hufflepuff with intimidating eyebrows and a dry sense of humor, who loved his sisters more than anything else, and would do anything for his friends.” Derek is gaping. He can’t help it. 

A warm hand cups his cheek, and Stiles’ smile softens. “I’ve been pretty gone for you for a long time, Derek, but I was so afraid of ruining our friendship that I kept quiet about it. My parents were best friends before they started dating, and I hoped that that would be how we would work too. Heather was never anything serious. I didn’t even consider her my girlfriend. Sure, sometimes we would kiss or make out, and I never bothered correcting people when they said that we were dating, but mostly we bonded over being in love with other people. I was complaining about you to her, and she’s the one who realized that you started acting weird when I started hanging out with her, and that’s when it clicked, you big doofus.”

Derek can’t think straight. Stiles is in love with _him?_ “You love me?”

Stiles laughs, a bright sound. “Yeah, I’m in love with you. And if I had figured it out sooner that you actually felt the same, I would never have messed around with Heather. I’ve only ever wanted to be with you, Derek.” He blushes, gaze dropping to Derek’s lips. He looks like he wants to say more, but Derek doesn’t give Stiles the chance. 

He surges forward, pressing their lips together. It’s awkward at first, too hard and the angle isn’t right. But then Derek tilts his head and Stiles opens his mouth, and finally Derek understands what people mean when they say they see fireworks. Kissing Stiles is even better than he imagined, because the younger man twines his fingers in Derek’s hair to tug at the locks, and he keeps making whining sounds that make Derek quake, and it’s real. It’s actually real. That thought makes something desperate burn in Derek’s chest.

He grips Stiles’ waist and steps forward until the younger man is pressed back against the wall, kissing him with a fervor. When he pulls back to take a deep breath, Stiles ducks his head and starts mouthing at his neck, kissing praises into his skin. He feels ready to burst, ready to drown, and then someone makes a gagging sound. Stiles lifts his head, but his grip on Derek stays tight.

Isaac is standing at the end of the corridor looking horrified. Heather is with him, and she looks so pleased. “I see that you found him, Stilinski,” she says, laughter evident in her voice. 

Stiles lifts one eyebrow at the pair. “I told you I was going to. What are you doing here?”

She gestures at the blond. “I wanted to make sure everything was okay, so I asked him to let me into the Hufflepuff commons just in case you needed back up.” She smirks. “I can see that everything turned out just fine.”

Stiles groans. Derek drops his head into the curve of his neck. “You both are terrible people. I disown you as my friends.” 

Isaac stutters, “You seriously couldn’t wait until you found a bedroom or something? Seriously? I think you just scared me for life.”

That makes Stiles snort. “Please, as if you and Scott haven’t been caught doing worse. At least I still have my pants on.”

The blond throws up his hands, his face burning. “I’m not discussing this with you. Just-find somewhere else to go. Please.”

When Stiles spits his tongue out, Derek breaks into laughter. He’s so warm. He takes Stiles hand, leaves a kiss on his neck, and pulls back. Stiles blinks at him and smiles softly.

“Come on,” Derek whispers, tugging on his hand to lead him away from where Isaac is gaping. He’s feeling brave, hand clutching Stiles’. “I know where we can go.”

**Author's Note:**

> This was for the Harry Potter theme of Sterek Bingo 2017


End file.
